2013 Express-News Area Super Teams

The San Antonio Express-News' special section honors the best high school athletes in cross country, football and volleyball. Teams were picked by Express-News beat writers with input from area coaches. Click the links below the photos to read the full stories.

By San Antonio Express-News staff

on December 29, 2013 6:54 PM

Photo: Edward A. Ornelas/San Antonio Express-News

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The San Antonio Express-News' special section honors the best high school athletes in cross country, football and volleyball. Teams were picked by Express-News beat writers with input from area coaches. Click the links below the photos to read the full stories. less

The San Antonio Express-News' special section honors the best high school athletes in cross country, football and volleyball. Teams were picked by Express-News beat writers with input from area coaches. Click ... more

Photo: Edward A. Ornelas/San Antonio Express-News

The San Antonio Express-News' special section honors the best... Photo-5656541.76813 - San Antonio Express-News

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Football games of the year

Brandeis' 12-10 win over O'Connor in Week 3 was our pick for the year's best game. Other good games included Johnson's win over Steele in the state quarterfinals, Judson's loss to Madison in the quarterfinals and Warren's win over East Central in the first round of the playoffs. Click the link below to read more on our favorite games.

Brandeis' 12-10 win over O'Connor in Week 3 was our pick for the year's best game. Other good games included Johnson's win over Steele in the state quarterfinals, Judson's loss to Madison in the quarterfinals ... more

Best performances: Recorded four sacks and nine total tackles in a state semifinal victory over Houston Stratford. ... Had 14 tackles, three tackles for loss, a sack and forced fumble in a victory over Victoria West. ... Had four sacks, eight tackles for loss and 11 total tackles in a victory over Highlands where Brennan allowed four total yards.

Notable: AP Class 4A Texas Defensive Player of the Year ... Under Armour All-American ... Recorded 20 sacks, 39 tackles for loss and 111 tackles for state finalists ... Led defense that allowed 5.1 points per game, 109,1 yards and recorded nine shutouts ... Three-time All-Area selection ... Committed to Texas.

Best performances: Rushed for 259 yards and five TDs on 22 carries in a 40-23 second-round victory over Reagan ... Ran for 283 yards and four TDs on 16 carries in a victory over Austin Westlake ... Rushed for 213 yards and five TDs on 21 carries in a victory over Judson.

Notable: AP first-team All-State, District 28-5A MVP ... Rushed for 2,159 yards and 38 TDs on 180 carries (12.0 yards per carry) for state quarterfinalists ... Finished career with 50-4 record and No. 5 all-time on area rushing list with 6,309 yards ... Averaged more than 10 yards per carry throughout career ... Two-time All-Area selection ... Committed to Texas Tech

Notable: Led the Jaguars to their first Class 5A state-semifinal appearance, defeating a who's who of the area's top programs — Smithson Valley, Brandeis and Steele — during the landmark journey. They hadn't won a postseason contest before this season. ... Guided Johnson to a school-record 12 wins and its best showing during District 26-5A competition.

Also considered for E-N honor: Stephen Basore, Brennan; Jared Johnston, Clemens less

Ron Rittimann, Johnson

Age: 46

Head coaching experience: 33-33 in six seasons, all at Johnson.

Notable: Led the Jaguars to their first Class 5A state-semifinal appearance, defeating a who's who of the area's top ... more

From left: Justin Stockton of Steele, Branden Valle of Clark, Hunter Rittimann of Johnson and Darion McElhannon of Johnson. Not pictured: Ty Summers of Reagan. Click the link below to see the rest of the First Team. less

From left: Justin Stockton of Steele, Branden Valle of Clark, Hunter Rittimann of Johnson and Darion McElhannon of Johnson. Not pictured: Ty Summers of Reagan. Click the link below to see the rest of the First ... more

From left: Abdul Beecham of Judson, JC Rast of Johnson, Izaiah Ramirez of New Braunfels Canyon, Carlos Garcia of Warren and Deionte Neal of Steele. Click the link below to see the rest of the First Team.

From left: Abdul Beecham of Judson, JC Rast of Johnson, Izaiah Ramirez of New Braunfels Canyon, Carlos Garcia of Warren and Deionte Neal of Steele. Click the link below to see the rest of the First Team.

From left: Daniel Rosenfeld of Antonian, Matt Valadez of Stockdale, Byron Proctor of Alamo Heights, Da'Shawn Key of Brennan and Brandon Ramon of Harlandale. Click the link below to see the rest of the First Team. less

From left: Daniel Rosenfeld of Antonian, Matt Valadez of Stockdale, Byron Proctor of Alamo Heights, Da'Shawn Key of Brennan and Brandon Ramon of Harlandale. Click the link below to see the rest of the First ... more

From left: Luke Clements of Floresville, Daniel Vidaurri of Brennan, Ronnie Rogers of Alamo Heights, Zach Pfeil of Stockdale and Will Windham of Clemens. Click the link below to see the rest of the First Team.

From left: Luke Clements of Floresville, Daniel Vidaurri of Brennan, Ronnie Rogers of Alamo Heights, Zach Pfeil of Stockdale and Will Windham of Clemens. Click the link below to see the rest of the First Team.

From left: Zach Sinor of Medina Valley and Levi Andrews of La Vernia. Not pictured: Clayton Hatfield of Boerne Champion and Justin Twine of Falls City. Click the link below to see the rest of the First Team.

From left: Zach Sinor of Medina Valley and Levi Andrews of La Vernia. Not pictured: Clayton Hatfield of Boerne Champion and Justin Twine of Falls City. Click the link below to see the rest of the First Team.

Brennan's run to the state finals garnered the No. 1 spot in... Photo-5643187.76813 - San Antonio Express-News

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Volleyball Co-player of the Year

Abby Buckingham, Churchill outside hitter

Height: 6-1

Grade: Sophomore

Best performance: Had 28 kills, a .394 hitting percentage and 24 digs to lead the Chargers to a four-set victory over Southlake Carroll — ranked No. 3 in nation — in the Class 5A state semifinals.

Notable: MVP of the North East tournament after leading the Chargers to their first title at the event since 2005, beating Class 5A state semifinalist Cy Falls in the final. ... All-tournament at UIL 5A state tournament, Pearland Invitational and Smithson Valley's Mizuno Texas Showdown. ... E-N Newcomer of the Year in 2012. ... Committed to Texas.

Best performance: Had 37 kills, 11 digs, 31/2 blocks and three aces in a five-set loss to Churchill in Region IV-5A final.

Notable: Named to the AVCA Under Armour All-America first team. ... Texas Girls Coaches Association Class 5A-4A Athlete of the Year for volleyball. ... Outstanding hitter at North East tournament and all-tournament at Pearland Invitational and Leander tournament. ... Super Team selection last year. ... Signed with Texas A&M

Notable: Led the Chargers to their first trip to the UIL Class 5A state tournament since 1998 and first berth in the state final since 1985. ... Defeated Southlake Carroll in the semifinals before falling in the final to The Woodlands, ranked No. 1 in the nation. ... Guided Churchill to an area-record 47 wins and a share of its first District 26-5A title since 2008. ... Hultgren was also the E-N Coach of the Year in 1997 after leading Judson to the regional final.

Also considered for E-N honor: Heather Sanders, New Braunfels Canyon; Courtney Patton, Alamo Heights less

Notable: Recorded 415 kills, 277 digs, 27 blocks and 23 aces ... Her kills total ranked third in school history and 12th in the area this year. ... Unanimous All-District 27-5A. ... Posted 20 kills, 15 digs, two blocks and an ace in a crucial district victory over Brandeis that propelled the Warriors into the chase for a playoff berth. less

Mikayla Vivens, Warren outside hitter

Grade: Freshman

Notable: Recorded 415 kills, 277 digs, 27 blocks and 23 aces ... Her kills total ranked third in school history and 12th in the area this year. ... Unanimous ... more

Churchill's run to the state finals nabbed the top rung on the... Photo-5503049.76813 - San Antonio Express-News

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Cross Country Runner of the Year

Alex Rogers, New Braunfels Canyon

Grade: Junior

Notable: Won the District 25-5A championship ... Placed eighth at the UIL Class 5A state meet and third at the Region IV-5A meet ... Placed fourth at the Round Rock McNeil Elite meet and seventh in the UTSA Ricardo Romo Classic Gold Division race.

Also considered for E-N honor: Chris Myers, Holmes; Chris Pietraszkiewicz, TMI less

Alex Rogers, New Braunfels Canyon

Grade: Junior

Notable: Won the District 25-5A championship ... Placed eighth at the UIL Class 5A state meet and third at the Region IV-5A meet ... Placed fourth at the Round Rock ... more

Notable: Won the UIL Class 5A state meet ... Placed second at the District 25-5A and Region IV-5A meets ... Won the UTSA Ricardo Romo Classic Gold Division race ... Won the Nike South Regional and placed 41st at Nike Nationals ... Led Unicorns to second place finish at state ... Super Team selection last year.

From left: Taylor Hawes of Smithson Valley, Allyson Gomez of Antonian, Morgan Szekely of New Braunfels, Paige Hofstad of New Braunfels and Megan Briley of Boerne Champion. Not pictured: Devin Clark and Anna Cozart, both of Smithson Valley.

From left: Taylor Hawes of Smithson Valley, Allyson Gomez of Antonian, Morgan Szekely of New Braunfels, Paige Hofstad of New Braunfels and Megan Briley of Boerne Champion. Not pictured: Devin Clark and Anna ... more

Notable: Lytle won the UIL Class 3A state championship on a tiebreaker. Lytle and Alvarado each scored 105 points, but the Pirates were awarded the state championship because their sixth runner finished ahead of Alvarado's. ... Lytle, which was a veteran team comprised of five seniors, one junior and one sophomore, qualified for the state meet by finishing second in the Region IV championships. ... Lytle was the state runner-up last year.